Designers spell out why they won’t dress Melania Trump

Some fashion designers show no interest in dressing Melania Trump and explained why. One of them is Christian Siriano, who previously dressed former US first lady Michelle Obama for her Democratic National Convention speech.

In an interview with Time Magazine, Siriano said the wife of US President Donald Trump currently represents what is happening politically and what is happening is not good for anyone. Left-wing fashion designers have reportedly started a movement to boycott dressing the first lady as a protest against the policies of the new administration.

Sophie Theallet said her brand was boycotting the FLOTUS due to the “rhetoric of racism, sexism, and xenophobia unleashed” during her husband’s campaign. Tom Ford and Marc Jacobs also insisted that they are not going to dress Melania.

Ford told the View that Melania is not necessarily his image. Jacobs, on the other hand, said he had no interest in dressing the FLOTUS. "Personally, I'd rather put my energy into helping out those who will be hurt by [Donald] Trump and his supporters,” he told WWD.

Zac Posen said he had “no current plans to dress members of the first family.” He told the Daily Beast that he opted to stay away from bringing his brand into politics. He went on to explain that there are issues that upsets him deeply, such as LGBT rights, immigration, funding for the arts, Planned Parenthood and women’s rights.

Phillip Lim, Derek Lam, Naeem Khan and Timo Weiland have also clarified they are not interested about Melania wearing their brands. Siriano said his fellow designers have his support as they find their voice.

“I think to an extent, it’s important because as designers, that’s the only voice we have,” he said. But he also clarified that it was not only Melania that he refused to dress, but anyone all over Twitter or Instagram hate-bashing people.

While some designers spelled out that they will not dress the FLOTUS, some brands like Dolce & Gabbana publicly expressed admiration for Melania. Stefano Gabbana, one half of the duo, took to Instagram to share a photo of Melania wearing his fashion house's blazer for her official White House portrait. Alongside the photo, he wrote, “BEAUTIFUL” and accompanied the caption with eight emoji hearts.

Glamour noted that Ralph Lauren faced boycott for dressing Melania for the inauguration of Trump in January. The FLOTUS sported a powder blue suit for the event.